Tenzing National Adventure Award for HMI principal

SNS, DARJEELING. 7 NOVEMBER 21 : The Principal of the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute (HMI) in Darjeeling, Gp Capt Jai Kishan, will be given the Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award for the second time. This time around, he will be honoured with the award for life achievement.

Mr Kishan will be receiving the award on 13 November amid a ceremony to beheld at Rashtrapati Bhawan.

"On 5th November, the Union Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports confirmed the name of Gp Capt Jai Kishan for the Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award for life achievement. This is the first time that an armed forces officer is receiving the prestigious award for the second time at the hands of the president of India in a ceremony," a press statement released by the HMI said today.

The Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award, formerly known as the National Adventure Awards, is one of the highest adventure sports honours in the country. In the year 2010, Mr Kishan had received the award in the Aero Sports Category for setting a world record in undertaking sky diving jump over the base of Mt Everest.

"However, this year the Ministry has recognized his life time contribution for supporting the youth to pursue adventure sports," said the press statement, which added that Mr Kishan was an avid parachute jump instructor and a qualified mountaineer.

The press release stated that he holds six world records, one Asian record and six national records in the field of adventure sports.

"In the last 20 years, he has undertaken more than 2000 parachute jumps in India and abroad. Ile has also trained more than twenty thousand parajumpers, organized more than eighty thousand jumps for special forces, led IAF sky

diving teams, climbed various mountains in India and abroad aim gwit h t raining more than three thousand mountaineers and adventure enthusiasts," the HMI said.

Among his other achievements are a world record and national record for Skydiving on Mt Everest, Cycle Expedition from Marsimikla (PangogTso lake, 186400 feet) and Kibitoo (Arunachal-China Border), inverted parachute formation at Rajpath, India Gate, and perform ing Vinyasa Yoga atop Mt Elbrus (18600 ft), the highest mountain in European Sub-continent.

"Under the banner of Azadi ka Amrut Mahotsav, Ile has trained 250 youths from Darjeeling and formed a disaster response team to provide timely assistance at the time of disasters. He also conceived and successfully organized 75 hours of relay Surya Namaskar in January 2021 with more than 2,50,000 Surya Namaskar repetition by 250 participants, setting a world record of the highest number of Surya Namaskar repetitions within a stipulated time," the statement added.

Among the other work Gp Captain Jai Kishan has undertaken are rescue of 125 mountaineers from the Sikkim Himalayas and keeping them at the IIMI for more than two months during the Covid- 19 pandemic.

"During April 2021, he successfully led a Climb-a-thon expedition to four peaks in Sikkim Himalayas, in which 125 trainee mountaineers climbed four peaks in 125 hours and unfurled the gigantic Indian National Flag measuring 7500 sq. ft. atop Mt Rhenok," the statement said.